[TWX]

Just curious how people have their tire placed. If you carry more than one spare choose all that apply.

 

[fastfed]

be nice to know the benefit of reversing.
I get the bed Idea and removing from underneath

 

[Clint]

Facing up so the valve can’t get damaged by anything. I’d imagine that’s why they put it that way and in years past we had alloy spare wheels to match.

Clint

 

[raine]

Facing up (OEM style to protect the air valve) and with a hard cover on top to protect the tire sidewalls from getting dented/damaged by the chassis cross members.

 

[smj999smj]

My 06 Pathfinder has alloy wheels with an alloy spare and was mounted from the factory with the face up, but my 08 Pathfinder has alloy wheels with a steel spare and the face was facing down. Only advantage I see with the face being down is that it makes it easier to check the tire pressure of the spare.

 

[phatB]

interesting,i noticed my spare was low on pressure when i bumped against it the other day but didnt even look to see which way it was mounted. i would say there is definitely a trade off: mounted face down you can easily air it up, but you're also exposing the face to road debris, for that reason i'd probably face it up. how often do you air up a spare? i never have in 24 years of owning over 10 cars. now i'll probably get a flat. lol

 

[Clint]

Do they make valve extenders so we could check pressure or add air while valve up?

Clint

 

[raine]

Do they make valve extenders so we could check pressure or add air while valve up?

Clint

They do, check Amazon or eBay

 

[Clint]

I see Harley Davidson has one that appears to be the longest in pictures, I’ll call and ask for length.

Clint

 

[TWX]

Facing up so the valve can’t get damaged by anything. I’d imagine that’s why they put it that way and in years past we had alloy spare wheels to match.

Clint

Facing up (OEM style to protect the air valve) and with a hard cover on top to protect the tire sidewalls from getting dented/damaged by the chassis cross members.

interesting,i noticed my spare was low on pressure when i bumped against it the other day but didnt even look to see which way it was mounted. i would say there is definitely a trade off: mounted face down you can easily air it up, but you're also exposing the face to road debris, for that reason i'd probably face it up. how often do you air up a spare? i never have in 24 years of owning over 10 cars. now i'll probably get a flat. lol

I put my spares face-down for now, opposite of factory. I lowered the wheel for the first time yesterday, and the outer face of the tire itself was deformed where it had been pressing on the frame and mounting since it was originally delivered, and there were some small rocks sitting up there. Pressure-washed the face (it was also a bit greasy) and turned it over faced-down to put it back.

There might be a little more possibility of damage to the valve stem, but I figure anything that would damage the valvestem recessed an inch into the wheel compared to the sidewall would probably damage the sidewall too, so the tire would be damaged regardless. The ease of checking the spare tire pressure and correcting at each oil change offsets any mild risk for valvestem damage.

When I had it down I liked the look of the factory steel 16" wheel. I'd honestly be half-tempted to go with four of those steel wheels if I was doing serious offroading, since the steel wheels are more likely to simply bend instead of breaking on the trail, and wouldn't gouge as severely if dragged on rocks as the aluminum wheels would.

I see Harley Davidson has one that appears to be the longest in pictures, I’ll call and ask for length.

Clint

I had a valvestem extender on a handtruck at work, a vehicle maintenance tech provided it and said it would make airing-up easier. Caught it on a curb and it tore the valvestem off the cart's wheel and instantly deflated it.

I won't use valvestem extenders anymore.

 

[raine]

I put my spares face-down for now, opposite of factory. I lowered the wheel for the first time yesterday, and the outer face of the tire itself was deformed where it had been pressing on the frame and mounting since it was originally delivered, and there were some small rocks sitting up there. Pressure-washed the face (it was also a bit greasy) and turned it over faced-down to put it back.

There might be a little more possibility of damage to the valve stem, but I figure anything that would damage the valvestem recessed an inch into the wheel compared to the sidewall would probably damage the sidewall too, so the tire would be damaged regardless. The ease of checking the spare tire pressure and correcting at each oil change offsets any mild risk for valvestem damage.

When I had it down I liked the look of the factory steel 16" wheel. I'd honestly be half-tempted to go with four of those steel wheels if I was doing serious offroading, since the steel wheels are more likely to simply bend instead of breaking on the trail, and wouldn't gouge as severely if dragged on rocks as the aluminum wheels would.

I had a valvestem extender on a handtruck at work, a vehicle maintenance tech provided it and said it would make airing-up easier. Caught it on a curb and it tore the valvestem off the cart's wheel and instantly deflated it.

I won't use valvestem extenders anymore.

Face down exposes the face of the wheel too. Either way will still "dent" the tire without something in between (thus why I put a hard cover on).

Valve stem extenders are great if used correctly. Keeping them on a rotating wheel that's prone to hitting things isn't a good idea LOL

I'm actually shopping for tire valve extenders now for my spare, I have a plan.

 

[TWX]

Face down exposes the face of the wheel too. Either way will still "dent" the tire without something in between (thus why I put a hard cover on).

I'd be more concerned on a FWD or another vehicle with a lot of positive offset where the face of the wheel sticks out further than the tire sidewall. On my truck, backspacing on a 7" wide 16" wheel with 40mm offset is approximately 5", so approximately 2" backset at the mating surface of the wheel, add another half-inch for the width of the bead of the rim, plus the tire itself sticks out at the sidewall over an inch and a half (265mm section-width is about 10.5 inches), it's not impossible that I could hit the front face of the hub of the wheel, but it's pretty unlikely. If I were that concerned I'd probably buy or make something that could be bolted to the wheel and protect the wheel and tire even if it scrapes. Or for four wheeling trips I'd move it to the bed if I was that worried and needed access easily.

I'm actually shopping for tire valve extenders now for my spare, I have a plan.

Like the cylons? ::grin::

 

[Clint]

I put my spares face-down for now, opposite of factory. I lowered the wheel for the first time yesterday, and the outer face of the tire itself was deformed where it had been pressing on the frame and mounting since it was originally delivered, and there were some small rocks sitting up there. Pressure-washed the face (it was also a bit greasy) and turned it over faced-down to put it back.

There might be a little more possibility of damage to the valve stem, but I figure anything that would damage the valvestem recessed an inch into the wheel compared to the sidewall would probably damage the sidewall too, so the tire would be damaged regardless. The ease of checking the spare tire pressure and correcting at each oil change offsets any mild risk for valvestem damage.

When I had it down I liked the look of the factory steel 16" wheel. I'd honestly be half-tempted to go with four of those steel wheels if I was doing serious offroading, since the steel wheels are more likely to simply bend instead of breaking on the trail, and wouldn't gouge as severely if dragged on rocks as the aluminum wheels would.



I had a valvestem extender on a handtruck at work, a vehicle maintenance tech provided it and said it would make airing-up easier. Caught it on a curb and it tore the valvestem off the cart's wheel and instantly deflated it.

I won't use valvestem extenders anymore.

I referring to an extender that I can reach in and check spare, air up if necessary and tuck away again.
You may do as you wish but either side will get frame cross bar dimples.

Clint

 

[whistler]

Or for four wheeling trips I'd move it to the bed if I was that worried and needed access easily.

You can used your recently installed utility track to strap it down.

 

[teecro]

Have been reversing them since at least 09 on several SUV and now the truck so that I can EASILY check them at least once every 6 weeks while I'm home...

 

[raine]

I'd be more concerned on a FWD or another vehicle with a lot of positive offset where the face of the wheel sticks out further than the tire sidewall. On my truck, backspacing on a 7" wide 16" wheel with 40mm offset is approximately 5", so approximately 2" backset at the mating surface of the wheel, add another half-inch for the width of the bead of the rim, plus the tire itself sticks out at the sidewall over an inch and a half (265mm section-width is about 10.5 inches), it's not impossible that I could hit the front face of the hub of the wheel, but it's pretty unlikely. If I were that concerned I'd probably buy or make something that could be bolted to the wheel and protect the wheel and tire even if it scrapes. Or for four wheeling trips I'd move it to the bed if I was that worried and needed access easily.



Like the cylons? ::grin::

Nothing but the rain.

You're overthinking the spare tire placement haha

I referring to an extender that I can reach in and check spare, air up if necessary and tuck away again.
You may do as you wish but either side will get frame cross bar dimples.

Clint

Unless you have a hard cover on it ::wink::

Yeah I'm thinking along the same lines, running an extender for quick air pressure checks (in between oil changes too, when I generally drop the spare just to inspect)

 

[Mathster]

Ive got mine flipped. same reason as others to be able to check pressure regularly.

 

[TWX]

You can used your recently installed utility track to strap it down.

that's a possibility, though I'd probably put the side tracks on and do like bbaker06 did:

Whether I do this in front of the wheel well or behind it might be dependent on if the shell is on at any given time. No shell, in front of the wheel well, at least on the passenger side may work and still be fairly accessible without taking up too much of the bed, but with the shell it would be better at the back if it fits, so the bed/shell wouldn't have to be unloaded to get at it.

I suppose vertical behind the cab might be OK too, if the shell is off. Wouldn't be my first choice though since long cargo wouldn't fit as well.

 

[fastfed]

On a side note, tomorrow I will be pulling the spare down and practicing how it works on my new 2017, this way if I ever need it I'll know.

 

[Boomer32]

I pulled mine due to my FM cat back, added a cheap tire cover and is face up in the bed. Bed is covered with a Roll N Lock tonneau.

I had swapped out the steely with a stock Pro4X wheel off ebay....nice the truck comes with the stock BFG full sized spare. Intentionally wanted the same tire diameter as my aftermarket 17's.

Hope I never have to use it.